Thursday, April 15, 2010

Word ... Spirit ... Word .... Spirit - IS there a balance?!

I'm an unashamed charismatic. I used to say I'm a behind the scenes reformed Christian (i.e. some reformed doctrine bothers me). So I like the term charismatic calvinist at the moment (but that may change soon!). Whatever the labels - the fact is that I love and appreciate the Word of God and I honour and desperately need and love the Spirit of God. But I do struggle to find that "tension" that Ern Baxter used to speak about.

I probably have far more books in my library than I care to count. And frequently want more! I am currently wrestling with my conscience and my wallet being HUGELY tempted by Wayne Grudem's awesome DVD collection called "Christian Beliefs". It is a mighty 16 DVD collection of hours of Wayne Grudem speaking on vital Christian doctrines. I'm sure I will give in at some point soon!

But I must admit the "Word" part of me was positively dribbling at these three videos of Wayne Grudem speaking about Phoenix Seminary where he lectures. If I had unlimited resources I would love nothing more than to come over to the United States and take full advantage of that incredible rich resource of teachers! I think the key is that we don't need to become a "Grudem-ite" or a "Piper-ite" or a "Macarthur-ite" or a "whatever-ite". I remember someone describing it as enjoying a selection of cakes at a buffet. You take the slice you like the look of and move on. Why not the same with teachers of the Word of God?!

Here are the videos;





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